Sunday, September 2, 2007

Abstinence.

An ad came on the radio from the Washington State Department of Health. It was a bunch of teenage voices saying things like "Because I don't want an STD." "Because I respect myself." "Because I don't want to get pregnant." "Because I make my own decisions." And at the end the announcer says "These are our reasons for not having sex. What's yours?"

(No one used the word "teenager" or "premarital" or anything of the sort. Maybe they don't think anyone should?)

And wow did that "make my own decisions" one bother me. How the hell is it your own decision if you're only supposed to decide not to?

Also bothering me: the way a lot of abstinence education aimed at girls focuses on how to say no to boys and peer pressure. And makes no mention at all of the idea that a girl might want to fuck because she's horny. I didn't lose my virginity when I was fifteen because my boyfriend wanted to; I did it because I wanted to. I knew how to say no; I just had no inclination to do so when he was so good with his hands and his cock was so big and his body so strong...

But most bothersome of all is the underlying assumption that teenage sex is a problem. It isn't. Teenage STDs and pregnancy are problems. But it seems like no one, even fairly liberal non-abstinence educators, will admit that two fifteen-year-olds having protected consensual sex are doing nothing wrong. I don't understand the harm but it seems almost to go without saying that there must be one. I guess people worry it'll mess kids up emotionally? Even if true, that's not a goddamn public health issue.

It's almost like pleasure itself is the enemy. And to what point and purpose...? Fucked if I know.